Scriptural Readings: Isaiah 11:1-5 & Luke 1:39-47
Liturgical Day: Feria VI Quattuor Temporum in Adventu — Ember Friday in Advent (II Class)
Theme: The Hidden Germ of Redemption and the Leaping of the Forerunner
As the quiet solemnity of Advent deepens, the Church in her ancient wisdom gives us the Ember Days—times of fasting, penance, and prayerful reflection in rhythm with the turning of the seasons. Ember Friday in Advent, or Feria VI Quattuor Temporum in Adventu, stands as a particularly rich day of meditation, offering us two luminous readings: Isaiah 11:1-5, the prophecy of the Root of Jesse, and Luke 1:39-47, the joyous meeting of the two expectant mothers—Mary and Elizabeth.
Let us draw these two readings together and drink from the wellspring of the Fathers, who saw in them the mystery of Christ’s Incarnation as it begins to shine forth in the hidden places of the world.
I. “And there shall come forth a rod out of the root of Jesse…” (Isaiah 11:1)
Isaiah’s vision, proclaimed in the stark stillness of winter’s advent, is a vision of hope in barrenness. A “rod,” a tender shoot, springs from a stump—a sign that what seemed dead will bring forth life. The Fathers saw in this a clear prophecy of the Blessed Virgin Mary and her divine Son.
St. Jerome, writing on this passage, says:
“The rod is the Virgin Mary, and the flower is Christ. The root of Jesse was almost dried up; for from the time of David until Mary, the nobility of the royal house had faded into obscurity. Yet from this withered root sprang the most noble shoot.” (In Isaiam, lib. IV)
Mary, humble and hidden, is this rod—the silent answer of God to the cry of a weary world. And from her, Christ, the Flower, comes forth not in regal splendor but in obscurity and poverty.
The virtues described by Isaiah—the spirit of wisdom, understanding, counsel, fortitude, knowledge, piety, and fear of the Lord—these rest upon the Messiah. The Gifts of the Holy Ghost, as they would later be known, find their perfection in Christ and overflow from Him to His Mystical Body, the Church.
St. Augustine writes:
“This prophecy is of the Lord Jesus Christ… who judged not by the eyes of the flesh but with justice and equity. The girdle of His loins is righteousness—that is, His human nature was ever bound to the will of the Father.” (Enarrationes in Psalmos, Ps. 21)
The justice of the Christ-child, even in the womb, is no earthly justice—it is divine righteousness, humility, and truth. Not yet born, yet He comes to sanctify, to judge not by appearances but by the hidden heart.
II. “And it came to pass… Mary arose and went with haste” (Luke 1:39-47)
The Gospel for this Ember Friday transports us to the hill country of Judaea, where the Virgin, newly overshadowed by the Holy Ghost, brings the unborn Christ into the house of Zechariah. The encounter is quiet, but its spiritual resonance shakes the hidden foundations of the world.
St. Ambrose comments:
“Mary set out in haste—because the joy of the Holy Ghost does not admit of delay. The grace of the visitation is not withheld, but flows immediately.” (Expositio Evangelii secundum Lucam, II)
This is no mere social visit. It is a liturgy of grace. Christ, concealed in Mary’s womb, sanctifies the unborn John in Elizabeth’s womb. The voice of Mary brings the Word Incarnate into contact with the Forerunner, and he leaps.
St. John Chrysostom reflects:
“Consider the marvelous thing: John leapt in the womb, not by his own movement, but moved by Christ who was in Mary. It was the lesser greeting the greater, the servant the Master, the friend the Bridegroom.” (Homilies on the Gospel of Matthew, 4)
Here we see the first liturgical gesture of the New Covenant: not words, but movement—joyous, prophetic, and hidden. This encounter, hidden from the world, is the first revelation of the Messianic age.
Elizabeth’s cry—“Whence is this to me, that the Mother of my Lord should come to me?”—is echoed by every soul who encounters Christ through Mary. She brings not herself, but her Son.
And Mary’s answer? The Magnificat—the first great canticle of the New Testament, sung in the voice of the Church’s archetype. Her soul magnifies the Lord—not herself. Her humility is the measure of her greatness.
III. The Ember Friday Meditation: Hidden Fruitfulness
In this time of penance and preparation, the readings chosen by Holy Mother Church remind us that God works in silence, in humility, in the hidden places. The barren stump, the hidden womb, the leaping of an unborn child—these are the signs of the new age dawning.
The Ember Days are not mere relics of the agrarian calendar—they are sanctified times for priests and people alike to enter more deeply into the sacred mysteries. In this season, the Church traditionally ordains her clergy—appropriately so, as these men are to become sacramental bearers of the same Christ who now stirs in Mary’s womb.
St. Leo the Great, in his sermon for the December Ember Days, exhorts:
“Let us fast, let us pray, let us give alms… that the grace of Him who came in humility may find us ready when He comes again in majesty.” (Sermo XVI de Jejunio Dec. mensis)
Conclusion: Girded with Righteousness, Rejoicing in Humility
As we journey toward Christmas, let this Ember Friday form in us the spirit of Isaiah’s prophecy and Mary’s song. Let us be like the stump—humbled, perhaps forgotten, but ready for new life to spring forth. Let us be like Elizabeth—attentive to the movement of grace. Let us be like Mary—bringing Christ to others, silently, humbly, joyfully.
And may we, like John, leap at His presence.
Come, Lord Jesus. Hidden now in sacrament, soon to be revealed in glory. Amen.